SOLICITATION NOTICE
Q -- TELE-ER CONSULTATION SUPPORT SERVICES - HIPAA Privacy Rule - Volume of ER Visits - FAR provision 52.212-3
- Notice Date
- 9/9/2013
- Notice Type
- Combined Synopsis/Solicitation
- NAICS
- 622110
— General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
- Contracting Office
- Department of Health and Human Services, Indian Health Service, Billings Area Office, 2900 4th Avenue North, PO Box 36600, Billings, Montana, 59107
- ZIP Code
- 59107
- Solicitation Number
- RFQ-10-13-042-REL
- Archive Date
- 10/8/2013
- Point of Contact
- Rita E Langager, Phone: 406.247.7293
- E-Mail Address
-
rita.langager@ihs.gov
(rita.langager@ihs.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) provision 52.212-3, 'Offeror Representations and Certifications - Commercial Items (AUG 2013) that must be completed and submitted with the offer. Click on 'ER Visits.Volumes' to access the data for the Northern Cheyenne Service Unit. Business Associate Agreement for Covered Entities and Business Associates. This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This procurement is being conducted pursuant to the authority of FAR Part 13, Simplified Acquisition Procedures; FAR Part 12, Acquisition of Commercial Items (Title VIII of the Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act of 1994 (Public Law 103-355)); and FAR 37.4, Nonpersonal Health Care Services (10 U.S.C. 2304 and 41 U.S.C. 253). This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; therefore, a written solicitation will not be issued. The Billings Area Indian Health Service (IHS) intends to award a fixed-price commercial item contract in response to Request for Quotation (RFQ)-10-13-042-REL. The solicitation is issued on an unrestricted basis. The solicitation documents and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 2005-69. The associated North American Industry Classification System code is 622110 and the small business size standard is $35.5 million. Potential contractors shall propose an all-inclusive monthly rate for the comprehensive services. PRICE SCHEDULE - TELE-ER CONSULTATION SUPPORT SERVICES: 12 MONTHS @ $____________________ per month = $_________________________. (Estimated call volume is 5-10 calls per day.) PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: The performance of this purchase order shall be for 12 months. (To be completed by the Government at time of award). PURPOSE OF THE CONTRACT: The purpose of this contract is to acquire TeleEmergency Room Consultation Support Services (TeleER) for the Northern Cheyenne Service Unit, 100 Cheyenne Avenue, Lame Deer, Montana. The Northern Cheyenne facility is staffed by a variety of physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and registered nurses. The referral hospitals are one to three hours away from the facility. The consultation support must be provided to the physician and other primary care providers along with nursing specific consultation support. Estimated call volume is five to ten calls per day. The attachments provide an individual overview of the facility, patient diagnosis and patient volumes. The procurement is a non-personal health care service contract, as defined in FAR 37.101, under which the Contractor is an independent contractor. The Government may evaluate the quality of professional and administrative services provided, but retains no control over the medical and professional aspects of services rendered (e.g., professional judgments, diagnosis for specific medical treatment). The Contractor shall indemnify the Government for any liability producing acts or omissions by the Contractor, its employees and agents occurring during contract performance. The Contractor shall maintain medical liability insurance, which is not less than the amount normally prevailing within the local community for the medical specialty concerned. The Contractor is required to ensure that its subcontracts for provisions of health care services contain the requirements of the clause at 52.237-7, including the maintenance of medical liability insurance. WORK SCHEDULE: The TeleER program will require that consultation support be available 24-7, 365 days a year. The response time from the contractor must be in one minute or less from the time the call is placed by the onsite provider or nurse. The consultation support will be provided by both telephonic and video conferencing. The phase-in schedule shall be within the first three months from contract approval at the Northern Cheyenne Service Unit. STATEMENT OF WORK: The purpose of this contract is to acquire TeleEmergency Room Consultation Support Services. Listed below are the performance elements that must be addressed in the contractor's proposal. Service Elements: (1) The TeleER service must be available 24-7, 365 day a year. (2) The contractor shall provide a full time dedicated physician and nursing staff. (3) The contractor will have a "back up" staff plan in the event of multiple calls from other facilities on the network. (4) Response time must be within one minute from time a consultation call is placed. (5) The contractor will be required to assist or arrange patient transfer to the facilities referral hospitals. (6) The contractor's staff will be onsite for implementation and orientation of facility staff. (7) The contractor will provide at least one yearly onsite visit to assess and coordinate the TeleER program. (8) The contractor will offer an on-going training program for new ER staff. Qualifications and Credentials: (1) All TeleER physicians must be boarded in Emergency Medicine. (2) All TeleER providers must be active members of the facility's Medical Staff in the Telehealth Provider category. (3) All nurses will be ER Nurse Specialists. Documentation and Electronic Record Usage (EHR): (1) The contractor will use the Indian Health Service (IHS) Electronic Health Record (EHR) for viewing the patient record. (2) All consultations from both physicians and nurses must be completed and returned to the facility within four (4) hours. The format provided must be in a typed format. ER form systems, like the "T-System" are acceptable as long any comment sections are provided in a typed format or an overall summary is provided in addition to the form. (3) Within 12 months all TeleER providers will use the IHS EHR for computerized order entry. (4) IHS will provide web based EHR training for the contractor. Continuous Quality Improvement and Training: (1) TeleER providers and nurses will participate in the facility's local Continuous Quality Improvement program. (2) The contractor will provide at least quarterly Continuing Education programs for providers and nurses. (3) The contractor will work and coordinate with the facility for any outcome and/or standard of care studies needed. Patient and Family Services: (1) TeleER providers and nurses must provide family education upon request as to patient condition, need for transfer, and possible outcomes of transfer, if warranted. (2) The contractor will work with the facility to develop and offer community marketing and an education program. (3) The contractor will work with facility for a startup community program. This includes, at a minimum, community marketing information, open house presentation and onsite representatives, if requested by the facility. Information Technology Services: (1) The contractor's system will assure a call response time of one minute or less. (2) The contractor will provide and install all video conferencing hardware required. (3) The contractor will work with IHS to determine network line requirements for the video system. (4) The contractor will assure 24-7, 365-day service is available. This includes daily testing of the system for connectivity and access. (5) The contractor's staff must fulfill IHS security and patient privacy requirements. (6) The IHS will provide a secure dedicated connection to the IHS facility. (7) The IHS will provide access and training for all RPMS package required. (8) The IHS will provide a Virtual Private Network connection(s) to the contractor. KNOWLEDGE REQUIRED BY THE POSITION: Specialized knowledge of the practice of Emergency Medicine is required. GUIDELINES: Guidelines available include DHHS, PHS, IHS, Billings Area, Service Unit and Medical Staff regulations, policies, procedures, and bylaws. In addition, traditional and currently accepted medical practices are available in the form of specialty consultation, medical journals, professional organizations and textbooks. In nearly all cases, however, the medical practitioner's judgment is the key factor in determining whether guidelines are to be adhered to, or deviated, or whether new guidelines need to be developed to protect the interests of the patient. COMPLEXITY: The work consists of the specialty practice of Emergency Medicine services and involves specialized knowledge and experience involving diagnosis and treatment of patients with emergency conditions and diseases. SCOPE AND EFFECT: The work of this position affects the health and well-being of individuals on an immediate basis; and the health status of the community on a broad basis. PERSONAL CONTACTS: Personal contacts are with patients, patient's families; other employees, representatives of federal, state and tribal health organizations, administrators and physicians. These contacts are made with individuals and groups in moderately unstructured settings. PURPOSE OF CONTACTS: The purpose of the contacts are to exchange information, resolve problems, educate people, influence and motivate individuals and groups to understand and accept recommended medical information, diagnosis and treatment regimens. PHYSICAL DEMANDS: The work will be off-site. WORK ENVIRONMENT: The work will be off-site. GOVERNMENT CONTRACT QUALITY ASSURANCE PROCEDURES: Upon orientation to the facility, the prospective contractor will be oriented on the EHR, RPMS, telehealth modalities, Indian Health Service policies and procedures, JCAHO requirements, Standards of care and all inpatient and outpatient duties required of the physician. The contractor will be evaluated by department chief/clinical director on performance of those duties. All associated Continuous Quality Improvement requirements are to be performed and verified by the clinical director. Actual work tasks are normally performed on a routine basis. Standard progress measures such as chart review, documentation/billing review and observations will be utilized by the clinical director. Pay requests shall be approved for payment by the clinical director or his designee and submitted for verification to the Contracting Officer's Representative (COR). Customer complaints shall be validated and shall not exceed more than one for any two clinic visits. The clinical director shall monitor quality of performance to assure duties are performed in accordance with the standards of care required by the hospital accreditation agency and that all documentation is completed according to the policy. A peer review will be conducted by the clinical director or his designee and a written evaluation performed for the services rendered. CREDENTIALS: All medical providers must complete all IHS credentialing requirements for direct and telehealth care. The policies and procedures in the Indian Health Manual Part 3, Chapter 1, "Medical Credentials and Privileges Review Process" shall apply to this contract. The policies can be accessed on the Internet at: http://www.ihs.gov/IHM/index.cfm?module=dsp_ihm_pc_p3c1. GOVERNMENT FURNISHED PROPERTY: The Northern Cheyenne Service Unit will be responsible for getting the contractor's medical staff access and clearance to all pertinent telehealth and computer services necessary to carry out their duties. COMPUTER SECURITY: Pursuant to the Federal Information Security Management Act of 2002 (FISMA), the contractor's medical staff will be required to complete a course in Computer Security Awareness Training (CSAT). This training must be completed annually by all employees including contractors, volunteers, students, and summer externs. The Contractor will be required to comply with the Federal Information Processing Standards Publication (FIPS PUB) Number 201, "Personal Identity Verification of Federal Employees and Contractors," and the associated Office of Management and Budget (OMB) implementation guidance for personal identity verification for all affected contractor and subcontractor personnel. Access/clearance to all pertinent computer systems, including completing the Rules of Behavior form, Security training; and a Business Partner Interconnection Security Agreement (BPISA), should be coordinated with the Service Unit Site Manager or LeAnn Christianson, contract Information System Security Officer (ISSO) in the Office of Information Management (OIM) at the Billings Area Office. LeAnn can be reached at (406) 247-7166 or by e-mail at LeAnn.Christianson@ihs.gov. SPECIAL CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS: Contractors cannot serve as expert witnesses in any suit against the Federal Government. Many of the IHS patients receiving services may only speak a native language and/or reside on a Native American Reservation, therefore, the Contractor must demonstrate sensitivity to cross-cultural and language differences. The Privacy Act of 1974 mandates that the Contractor maintain complete confidentiality of all administrative, medical and personnel records, and all other pertinent information that comes to his/her attention or knowledge. The Privacy Act carries both civil and criminal penalties for unlawful disclosure of records. Violation of such confidentiality shall be cause for adverse action. The Contractor shall comply with IHS facility infection control and safety procedures, practices, and standards. CONTRACTING OFFICER AUTHORITY: Authority to negotiate changes in the terms, conditions or amounts cited in this contract is reserved for the Contracting Officer. CONTRACTING OFFICER'S REPRESENTATIVE (COR): The COR shall be responsible for: (1) Monitoring the Contractor's technical progress, including surveillance and assessment of performance and recommending technical changes; (2) Interpreting the Statement of Work; (3) Technical evaluation as required; (4) Technical inspections and acceptance; and (5) Assisting the Contractor in the resolution of technical problems encountered during performance of this contract. INVOICE SUBMISSION AND PAYMENT: The Contractor shall submit its invoice to the Clinical Director at the Northern Cheyenne Service Unit, PHS Indian Health Center, P.O. Box 70, Lame Deer, Montana 59043. The Contractor agrees to include the following information on each invoice: (1) Contractor's name, address and telephone number; (2) Contract Number; (3) Invoice number and date; (4) Cost or price; (5) Dates of Service including the number of calls received; and (6) Remit to address. Payment shall be made by the Billings Area Financial Management Branch, P.O. Box 36600, Billings, Montana 59107. PROVISIONS AND CLAUSES: The following provisions and clauses apply to this acquisition. The FAR provision 52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors Commercial Items; and 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications Commercial Items are incorporated by reference. The provision at 52.212-2 applies to this acquisition and is provided in full text. FAR 52.212-2 EVALUATION - COMMERCIAL ITEMS (JAN 1999): (a) The Government will award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. The following factors shall be used to evaluate offers: (1) HAVE THE FACILITY, EQUIPMENT AND STAFF CAPABLE OF PROVIDING TeleER SERVICES = 35 POINTS. Potential contractors shall identify the location of the facility, the equipment available, and submit the professional licenses and resumes of the staff directly involved in providing the services. Resumes must include information relating to: (a) Professional Education; (b) Certifications; and (c) Previous jobs; (2) ABILITY TO ASSURE 24-7, 365 DAY SERVICE = 35 POINTS. Offerors must submit a detailed work plan that addresses how each aspect of the "Statement of Work" will be accomplished and should be in as much detail to ensure it fully explains your proposed technical approach or method; and (3) PAST PERFORMANCE = 30 POINTS. The offeror must demonstrate its record of successful performance in past contracts and/or jobs, Government and/or commercial. Each offeror will be evaluated on its performance under existing and prior contracts/jobs. The offeror must list at least three contracts/jobs and include the following information. (1) Name of Government agency/Company; (2) Contract number, if applicable; (3) Dates of Service/Employment; (4) Total contract value/Hourly wage; (5) Description of contract work/Job duties; (6) Contracting Officer/Company Manager and telephone number; (7) Program Manager and telephone number, if applicable. Technical and past performance, when combined, are considered approximately equal to cost or price. (b) Options. The Government will evaluate offers for award purposes by adding the total price for all options to the total price for the basic requirement. The Government may determine that an offer is unacceptable if the option prices are significantly unbalanced. Evaluation of options shall not obligate the Government to exercise the option(s). (c) A written notice of award or acceptance of an offer, mailed or otherwise furnished to the successful offeror within the time for acceptance specified in the offer, shall result in a binding contract without further action by either party. Before the offer's specified expiration time, the Government may accept an offer (or part of an offer), whether or not there are negotiations after its receipt, unless a written notice of withdrawal is received before award. The following FAR and Health and Human Services Acquisition Regulation (HHSAR) clauses are applicable: 52.204-7, 52.204-9, 52.204-13, 52.212-4, 52.212-5, 52.215-5, 52.217-8, 52.223-5, 52.223-6, 52.224-1, 52.224-2, 52.225-25, 52.227-14, 52.227-17, 52.228-5, 52.229-3, 52.232-11, 52.232-18, 52.232-39, 52.237-2, 52.237-3, 52.237-7, 52.242-15, 52.242-17, 52.245-1, 352.201-70, 352.202-1, 352.215-1, 352.215-70, 352.222-70, 352.223-70, 352.224-70, 352.227-70, 352.231-71, 352.237-70, 352.237-71, 352.237-72, 352.239-71, 352.239-72, 352.239-73, 352.242-71, 352.242-72, 352.242-73, and 352.270-2. The following FAR clauses cited in 52.212-5 are applicable to the acquisition: 52.203-6 with Alternate I, 52.204-10, 52.209-6, 52.209-10, 52.219-8, 52.219-28, 52.222-3, 52.222-21, 52.222-26, 52.222-35, 52.222-36, 52.222-37, 52.222-40, 52.223-18, 52.225-13 and 52.232-33. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will provide full text copies of the FAR and HHSAR provisions and clauses. The provisions and clauses may also be accessed electronically at https://www.acquisition.gov/ and http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=ecfr&sid=3524d214210697effd2fd5c77848a806&rgn=div5&view=text&node=48:4.0.1.8.33&idno=48. PROPOSAL SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS: The Contractor shall provide evidence of, or submit a written response to, the technical evaluation factors in FAR 52.212-2. In addition, the Contractor shall submit a completed copy of FAR 52.212-3 with its offer. Contractors intending to conduct business with the Federal Government must register with the System for Award Management (SAM). SAM replaces the Department of Defense's Central Contractor Registration (CCR) database. SAM is now the primary Government repository, which retains information on Government contractors. You may register via the Internet at www.sam.gov. All responsible offerors may submit a proposal, which shall be considered by the Agency. Offers shall be submitted to the Billings Area Indian Health Service, 2900 Fourth Avenue North, Room 304, Billings, Montana 59101, no later than 2:00 p.m., on September 23, 2013. The offer must be submitted in a sealed envelope, addressed to this office, showing the time specified for receipt, the solicitation number, and your company's name and address. Offers will also be accepted by e-mail at Rita.Langager@ihs.gov or by fax at (406) 247-7108. ACCEPTANCE PERIOD: Your proposal must stipulate that it is predicated upon all the terms and conditions of this RFQ. In addition, it must contain a statement to the effect that it is firm for a period of at least 90 days from the date of receipt by the Government.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/HHS/IHS/IHS-BILLINGS/RFQ-10-13-042-REL/listing.html)
- Record
- SN03180112-W 20130911/130909235508-7a18b65f64eb62e277bc8598ce5e3ce6 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
| FSG Index | This Issue's Index | Today's FBO Daily Index Page |